Joseph Walden

Design Director

Joseph Walden leads the team that creates new Christopher Radko ornaments and products. A graduate of the School of Visual Arts with a Masters Degree in Art Education, Joseph first brought his high level of formal training in the arts and prolific design abilities to Christopher Radko over a decade ago. His valuable insight and experience is enthusiastically applied to creating new and exciting holiday collections year after year. Joseph takes great pride in incorporating the style and tradition that Radko is known for into each new piece.

“I always become very excited to unveil our new product line, as each collection is unique and special. We are so proud to share our treasures with the world and I love to hear all the positive feedback from our customers. Best of all, I really look forward to seeing the expression on collector’s faces when they first get a chance to see what the new year has to offer.”

Joseph often gets asked how he continually comes up with new ideas for spectacular Radko creations. He explains, “You never know where inspiration may come from. Everything I see or hear around me can spark new inspiration. Sometimes it is a pattern that I see in a fine painting, a line in a classic Christmas story, a conversation that we may be having in the studio, or a suggestion from a collector. Sometimes when I am simply sketching, something just clicks and my design takes a new unexpected path. I often know I’m on to a good design when it begins to make me smile–then I know I have a winner. I love what I do and I think that is important, because I feel it really shows in the final design.”

Details are always impeccable and the artistry is consistently magnificent. Each hand made glass ornament that begins as a simple idea is eventually produced in a European factory that employs the same time-tested techniques and processes that have been used since the company’s very beginning.

Mario Taré

Senior Designer

Mario was Christopher Radko’s founding designer and now a quarter century later, is the senior designer for the company. He joined the company as the first Christmas Ornament Designer after having moved to the United States and spending more than a decade crafting fine and intricate heirloom pieces of jewelry as a jewelry designer.

Mario has been involved in the success of every Christopher Radko line. As an example, the Home for the Holidays tabletop collection has established itself as a core brand in the Radko portfolio under his direction. Additionally, he was also a key team member in developing the wildly popular vintage 1940s-themed Shiny-Brite^™ collection.

“I am very proud to have been a part of bringing so many of the Christopher Radko designs to life and knowing that my work brings joy to so many families. It is a privilege to work with the team of dedicated and talented Radko designers and artisans. I am thankful that I get to draw and design for a living and when I have the privilege of meeting collectors who admire the Radko products that we create, it’s a humbling experience for which I am extremely grateful.”

Through the years, the core Radko brands have expanded and evolved by the continued dedication and talents Mario brings to the Radko brand. By tirelessly focusing on market trends and innovative design techniques, Mario’s designs ensure that each collection created is worthy of the “Radko” name and legacy.

Lucas Madden

Director of Operations and Product Management

Director of Operations and Product Management Lucas Madden oversees the development, production, and distribution of the Christopher Radko Fine European Glass collection as well as our Home for the Holidays®, Shiny-Brite®, and Celebrations by Radko™ lines. He is also responsible for quality control on a brand-wide basis: no easy task, given the high standards to which we hold all of our factories.

Dedicated to upholding the quality and excellence that the Radko name has represented for more than twenty-five years, Lucas has developed a specialty for curating collections that combine an interesting mix of classic Radko styles with fresh, fun, contemporary ideas. Watching each season’s designs move through the entire development process from original concept to exquisite final products remains one of the many highlights of his position:

“I think what makes our designs so unique is the detailed development time that each item requires. No stone goes unturned as we go through the process and what results are the finished products that make everyone smile. It is a lot of fun to come to work each day.”

Since joining The Christopher Radko Company in early 2009, Lucas has created and cultivated valuable relationships with many new vendors across Eastern Europe, increased productivity in both the U.S. and abroad, conceptualized and introduced several new product lines, and orchestrated a very successful year-long 25th Anniversary program developing, producing and marketing a collection of specialty décor, coordinating and participating in nationwide in-store signing events with Christopher Radko artists, and establishing a strong online presence for the brand to commemorate Christopher Radko’s first quarter century.

An avid golfer, Lucas is a Rochester native and a graduate of Siena College.